4G Reality Check: Beware of These Cons and Lies

Anyone in the market for a smartphone these days will likely see the term 4G shoved in their face by the major carriers. “We have the biggest network!” “We have the fastest speeds!” Sometimes the providers back up their claims with blazing fast data and great coverage, but other times, consumers will wind up feeling cheated. Here are some examples in which the reality simply doesn’t live up to the marketing hype.

Sprint’s 4G LTE Phones: Hurry Up and Wait

The nation’s third-largest carrier finds itself in serious catchup mode against Verizon Wireless and AT&T. Sprint is launching its 4G LTE service in six cities this summer, while Verizon already has more than 250 markets lit up and AT&T has 35 and counting. So what do you do in the meantime?

If you’re Sprint, you launch phones with 4G LTE in the name that don’t yet offer those speeds anywhere. Devices such as the HTC Evo 4G LTE and LG Viper 4G LTE don’t even connect to Sprint’s older WiMax network. For now, they’re 3G only. I gave Sprint a pass back in 2010 with the original Evo 4G because the carrier was first to market. Now the game has changed.

I think it’s great that Sprint will be the only provider offering unlimited 4G data, but right now, the names of these phones feel downright misleading. At the very least, Sprint should be more transparent about which cities will be getting LTE service after the first six markets launch, so shoppers will know when coverage is coming to their neck of the woods.

The Faux G iPhone

Did you know you could get a 4G iPhone in the U.S. right now? No, the iPhone 5 didn’t just launch. It’s just that the recent iOS update to the iPhone 4S on AT&T changed the 3G icon to 4G at the top of the screen.

Alas, the phone didn’t get any faster; it’s just that Apple’s software now reports AT&T’s HSPA+ network as a 4G network, just as the carrier’s many Android phones do. In our tests, AT&T’s iPhone 4S was indeed faster than Sprint’s and Verizon’s models, but the speeds pale in comparison to AT&T’s newer 4G LTE network.

As anyone who has used the AT&T iPhone in a dense urban area knows, speeds can slow to the point where you have to wait 30 seconds for the contents of an email to load. That’s not 4G to me, making this one “upgrade” I could do without.

T-Mobile’s Rigged Test Drive

Of all the major carriers, T-Mobile is furthest behind in deploying a 4G LTE network, which won’t get off the ground until 2013. In the meantime, the carrier does have a HSPA+ 4G network that offers vast coverage and pretty good speeds. So why would you sabotage that with bad marketing?

T-Mobile has set up a website that invites people to test drive its network versus the competition. Unfortunately, the carrier chose the 3G iPhone 4S from Sprint and Verizon and the faux G iPhone 4S from AT&T as the basis for comparison. Of course T-Mobile’s 4G phones are going to wipe the floor with these devices when it comes to streaming movies and downloading apps. It’s simply not a fair fight.

The HTC One S from T-Mobile we recently tested delivered downloads as high as 9.5 Mbps and uploads as fast as 3.2 Mbps, which are actually well within the claimed range of 4G LTE. On the other hand, T-Mobile’s performance can be quite inconsistent, depending on where you are. In front of a T-Mobile store transfer rates were as low as .1 Mbps down and .6 Mbps up.

T-Mobile should just stick with its 4G-for-less-money message and leave the fixed fights to the WWE.

Bottom Line

If you want the fastest speeds on a smartphone right now, Verizon Wireless and AT&T are your best bet. With Verizon, it’s easy for shoppers, because the carrier offers only one flavor of 4G in LTE, and you get consistently fast data in the most cities. With AT&T, it’s more complicated because there are two varieties of 4G: HSPA+ and LE. Go with a phone that offers real 4G–LTE–like the HTC One X, if you want the best performance. Should you avoid 4G phones from the other carriers? Of course not, but you should know what you’re getting — and what’s missing.

Editor-in-chief Mark Spoonauer directs LAPTOP’s online and print editorial content and has been covering mobile and wireless technology for over a decade. Each week Mark’s SpoonFed column provides his insights and analysis of the biggest mobile trends and news. You can also follow him on Twitter.

Responsible for the editorial vision for Laptop Mag and Tom's Guide, Mark Spoonauer has been Editor in Chief of LAPTOP since 2003 and has covered technology for nearly 15 years. Mark speaks at key tech industry events and makes regular media appearances on CNBC, Fox and CNN. Mark was previously reviews editor at Mobile Computing, and his work has appeared in Wired, Popular Science and Inc.

1. Your complaints about T-Mobile rigging the tests are harsher than need be. Mainly because the iPhone is the most common and well known smartphone and is usually used as the benchmark or comparison when talking about other phones, it seems like a logical choice. Even more so though is the fact that it is the only phone on the market that is available on all three T-Mobile’s competitors networks, and not on theirs.

2. There is also BIG differences in 3G network speeds, which is still where all the carriers have the most comprehensive coverage. Sprint is dog slow on 3G. Verizon is decent but AT&T and T-Mobile absolutely slay with their speeds. I have seen 3G phones on T-Mobile do 6mbps down.

Hey guys,
I was one of those who got duped by Sprint, back in June 2010 the
1st 4G phone came out (Evo 4G) we were promised 4G in a few months, couple of
later we still do not have 4G..
Alex Valencia, CA

Yeah, I see great speeds with At&t(iPhone 4s) and T-Mobiles(Galaxy Nexus) Faux-G. With At&t I usually max out at about 5mbps down. T-Mobile never ceases to amaze me with speed. I consistently get 12MB down on my GNex on T-Mobile, everywhere I go…I don’t know what the article writer is talking about, I’ve NEVER seen my speeds drop below 2mbps with poor signal…Like I said, I usually hover around 12mb down, I’ve seen it spike to 15mb a few times. I just came back from Florida and the service down their was still fast as I need (still hovered around 12mb down) so I’ve been around the US and places with T-mo service has been nothing but fast and impeccable. LTE is fast, but right now, I don’t think we could tell the difference between HSPA+ at 12MBps down and LTE at 50mbps down on current phones. In fact, with limited data plans, I really see LTE as being kinda pointless until the Government steps in and prevents the carriers from instituting artificial data caps.

I’ve tried ALL the carriers, and Sprint promised “we’ll have service in your neighborhood in one month”. Ha ha ha. That was 1997, and Sprint still doesn’t reach my neighborhood! After trying most of the others, we’re stuck with T-Mobile, the only carrier that actually services our neighborhood. However, the “Unlimited” everything is a BIG FAT JOKE!! After 3 days when our cycle restarts, we get a notice that despite using our household WiFi, we’ve “over used our 2 mb of service, and we will slow down your service until the next billing cycle”. BTW, you can “upgrade” your unlimited service for a hefty fee!
Then, there’s the useless HTC phones. I’ve “killed” three in the past several months, they only stay charged for 3.5 hours, and every new phone has a completely different set-up, so it’s start over with the new system. Grrrrr! If I didn’t need a phone for being a working mom, and trying to stay in touch with all my kids, the carpool groups, the music teachers, etc. I would ditch the whole cell phone expense, and have some peace and quiet!

The phones are junk. They do not work, and do not stay in working condition for a year, even with keeping the phone in a special case, treating it like the Hope Diamond. I cannot put it in my purse, carry it in my pocket, or even breath on it, or the phone shows that it’s gotten wet, which thereby voids the warranty. In a humid climate, just taking it outside will void the warranty. I’m so FED UP with T-Mobile that I’m ready to ditch them all, except they have us stuck in a hefty contract, with outrageous fees to cancel the contract!

This is just ridiculous, and I’m ready to go back to having just one land line, and asking people to leave me a message and “I’ll get back to you when I have time”. If you don’t have a contract with a company, don’t sign one, unless there is an “out” for poor service, poor equipment, and a contract of “unlimited service” that is only good for the first three days of the monthly rotation!

Good luck to anyone just begining this process. Maybe we can send smoke signals to each other, using these stupid “smart phones” as the fuel to the fires!!

Thats real funny guys. I have the Samsung galaxy 2 on T-mobile’s network. I did a speed test in a big city and got 40 mbps.. No LTE. LTE is a joke. All it means is you have Really good signal to your 4g tower.